Guest:
Elizabeth Funk - CEO of DignityMoves
Guest Bio:
Elizabeth Funk is the Founder and CEO of DignityMoves, a nonprofit redefining how we get unhoused people off the street through interim housing deployed with speed, dignity, and cost-efficiency. With a background in impact investing and urban innovation, Elizabeth brings real-world solutions to a policy conversation often stuck in ideology. Her mission is simple: To ensure no one is forced to sleep outside in a state as wealthy and resourceful as California.
Show Summary
California has spent more than $24 billion on homelessness during the Newsom administration — so why does the crisis only seem to be getting worse?
In this episode, Elizabeth Funk breaks down what’s really behind the persistent homelessness crisis and offers a bold, clear-eyed solution. As the founder of DignityMoves, she argues that the real issue is getting unhoused people off the street asap and providing them with the community and support necessary to turn their lives around.
She shares why interim housing needs to come before permanent housing, how interim housing can be built faster and cheaper, and why even well-meaning politicians and nonprofits are incentivized to keep our currently broken system.
You’ll also hear how DignityMoves is creating communities with privacy, safety, and dignity — and what it would actually take to scale this model across the state.
Chapters
00:00 – Why Is Homelessness Worse After $24 Billion?
01:10 – California’s Policy Choice: Shelter vs. Housing
03:45 – The True Cost of Living on the Street
04:29 – From Job Loss to Meth: A Personal Story
05:46 – How the Homeless System Is Set Up to Fail
07:00 – Why Shelter Isn’t Enough (and What’s Better)
09:14 – Inside a DignityMoves Site: How It Works
11:52 – Privacy, Pets & Partners: Dignity with DignityMoves
14:24 – Stabilization Before Solutions: A New Model
16:24 – Scaling the Model: 1% to 100%
17:09 – Why Everyone Should Support Interim Housing
18:57 – Who Has a Financial Incentive to Keep This Broken?
20:39 – Misconceptions from Politicians & Citizens
22:20 – How to Get Involved with DignityMoves
24:01 – Rapid Fire: Fixing It, Fast
24:59 – California: A State With All the Tools — And One Big Flaw
Connect with Elizabeth Funk
X: https://x.com/elizabethfunkca
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/efunksanfran/?hl=en
Linked In: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elizabeth-funk/
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